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Valley artisan wraps strong memories in soft materials
A family affair
By Dan AuBrey
Molly Higgins (Meg), (Marmee) Chloe Lamond (Marmee), Piper Ward (Amy), Olivia Levin (Beth) and Gretchen Cole (Jo) are the March family for Hopewell Valley Central High School’s June production of “Little Women.” For details, turn to Page 3. (Photo by Maria O’Leary Photography.)
The scoop on Aunt Chubby’s Luncheonette’s long history is tied into the fabric of Hopewell Borough itself By Joe EMansKi
It is seven-thirty in the morning on a pleasant Friday in May, and Aunt Chubby’s Luncheonette already has a pretty good crowd. Sunlight is in the window, fresh treats are in the pastry case, and a row of early risers sits at the vin-
tage lunch counter, chatting and drinking coffee or tea. Masks on the faces of staff and some customers are reminders that we are still coming out of a pandemic. If not for that, things would feel downright normal at this café — or is it a diner? — at the corner of Railroad Place and Greenwood Avenue in Hopewell Borough. On the breakfast menu is the usual fare: eggs with home fries and toast ($8), eggs Benedict with pork roll in place of the traditional Canadian bacon ($13), pancakes ($10; $11 for buckwheat), a
roasted veggie bowl with eggs ($12), vegan avocado toast ($10), croissant bread pudding ($10) and more. Customers Bob Witkowski, Keith Gwin and Doug Dixon are seated at a table in the back. They are waiting for Sal Torre and George Hall to join them. They are there to eat breakfast together, but that is not the only reason. They are also there to see Witkowski present Chubby’s owners, Lyn Farrugia and Michelle Hamilton, with a surprise gift. The gift is an ice cream scoop. One with a story that See CHUBBY, Page 14
Michelle Schragger stands in the front room of her early 19th century home on Main Street in Pennington and gestures to a large space between a coffee table and fireplace hearth extension, both covered with materials of various brightness and texture. “This space here is where I lay out everything,” says Schragger, discussing her business, Memory Quilts by Michelle. “I cut the pieces into squares and lay them out.” The squares are clothing or other fabrics used by a person who is being memorialized after death or celebrating a milestone. For the former, Schragger says, “There might be T-shirts in there. But there also may be dress shirts and khakis. I’ve used yarmulkes and bow ties, bathing suits. Pretty much anything that was special, grandpa’s favorite shirt — even with the spots on it.” The others commemorate personal milestones, kids graduating from high school or college, and mainly use student’ T-shirts as keepsakes. Although she says the end of the academic year and Christmas are her busiest times, over the past year she’s done over 200 quilts — as well as 2,400 Covid-19 masks. “This is how I lay it out,” she says showing me a cellphone photograph of a multicolor arrangement of squares
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of three sizes based on the number of 12-inch squares of materials: throw, 12 squares, $84; twin, 24 squares, $168; and full/queen, 30 squares, $210. She continues to say she sends the image to the client and says, “That’s what I have. Some will say, ‘It’s okay.’ Others will move things around to make it more meaningful. I let them shift things around on something that they want to feature. It is collaborative. But sometimes people drop stuff on my front porch and say, do what you do.” Picking up another item and showing tis design, a twotone memory pillow, she says the somber brown section is from the shirt a man wore when he died. The contrasting floral arrangements on the other side are from the Hawaiian shirts he loved to wear. She says her clients ask for the memorial or memory-related objects “To have something that they can touch or feel of their loved one.” Pointing to a dark swath of material, Schragger says, “For memory quilts, I use this really soft plush to make it comforting and soft, something you can snuggle with.” As we walk into her sewing room, a small room connecting the front room and kitchen and table with a sewing machine and piles of cloth, Schragger says all the projects in process there are memory quilts for people who have died of Covid, including See QUILTS, Page 8
Jack’s GREENHOUSE & FARM
JACK’S IS LOADED WITH ANNUALS • HANGING BASKETS • PATIO POTS VEGETABLE PLANTS • HERBS • MELON PLANTS • FIG TREES • SHRUBS TREES • PERENNIALS -PLANT SOMETHING! See Our Ad & Coupons On Page 13
1179 NEWARK, NJ